Bible: Ezekiel 16:1-59

God’s Unfaithful Bride

16:1The wordof the Lordcame tome:16:2“Sonof man, confrontJerusalem1with her abominable practices16:3and say, ‘This is whatthe sovereignLordsays to Jerusalem: Your originand your birthwere in the landof the Canaanites; your fatherwas an Amoriteand your mothera Hittite.16:4As for your birth, on the dayyou were bornyour umbilical cordwas notcut, norwere you washedin water;2you were certainly notrubbed downwith salt, norwrappedwith blankets.316:5Noeyetook pityonyou to doeven oneof thesethings for you to spareyou;4 you were thrown outintothe openfield5because you were detestedon the dayyou were born.

16:6 “‘I passedby you and sawyou kicking around helplesslyin your blood. I saidto you as you lay there in your blood, “Live!” I saidto you as you lay there in your blood, “Live!”616:7I madeyou plentifullike sproutsin a field; you grewtalland cameof age so thatyou could wear jewelry. Your breastshad formedand your hairhad grown, but youwere still nakedand bare.

16:8 “‘Then I passedby you and watchedyou, noticing7 thatyou had reached the age for love.8 I spreadmy cloak9overyou and coveredyour nakedness. I swore a solemnoath to you and enteredinto a marriage covenantwithyou, declaresthe sovereignLord, and you becamemine.

16:15 “‘But you trustedin your beautyand capitalizedonyour fameby becoming a prostitute. You offered your sexual favorstoeveryman who passed byso that your beauty12 became his.16:16You tooksome of your clothingand madefor yourself decoratedhigh places; you engagedin prostitutiononthem. You wentto him to becomehis.1316:17You also tookyour beautifuljewelry, made of my goldand my silverI had givento you, and madefor yourself maleimagesand engaged in prostitution14with them.16:18You tookyour embroideredclothingand used it to coverthem; you offered my olive oiland my incenseto them.16:19As for my foodthatI gave you – the fine flour, olive oil, and honey I fed you – you placed it before them as a soothing aroma. That is exactly what happened, declares the sovereign Lord.

16:23 “‘Afterallof your evil– “Woe! Woeto you!” declaresthe sovereignLord –16:24you builtyourself a chamber17and put up a pavilion18in everypublic square.16:25Atthe headof everystreetyou erectedyour pavilionand you disgraced19your beautywhen you spread20your legsto everypasserbyand multipliedyour promiscuity.16:26You engaged in prostitutionwiththe Egyptians, your sexually aroused neighbors,21multiplyingyour promiscuityand provokingme to anger.16:27So see here, I have stretchedout my handagainstyou and cut off your rations. I have deliveredyou into the power of thosewho hateyou, the daughtersof the Philistines, who were ashamedbyyour obsceneconduct.16:28You engaged in prostitutionwiththe Assyriansbecause your sexual desires were insatiable; you prostitutedyourself with them and yetyou were still notsatisfied.16:29Then you multipliedyour promiscuitytothe landof merchants, Babylonia,22but you were notsatisfiedthereeither.

16:30 “‘Howsickis your heart, declaresthe sovereignLord, when you performallof theseacts, the deedsof a boldprostitute.16:31When you builtyour chamberat the headof everystreetand put up your pavilionin everypublic square, you were notlike a prostitute, because you scoffedat payment.23

16:35 “‘ThereforeO prostitute, hearthe wordof the Lord:16:36This is whatthe sovereignLordsays: Becauseyour lust26was poured outand your nakednesswas uncoveredin your prostitutionwithyour lovers, and because of allyour detestableidols, and because of the bloodof your childrenyou have givento them,16:37therefore, take note: I am aboutto gatherallyour loverswhomyou enjoyed, both allthoseyou lovedand allthose you hated. I will gatherthem againstyou from all around, and I will exposeyour nakednesstothem, and they will seeallyour nakedness.2716:38I will punish you as an adulteressand murdererdeserves.28 I willavengeyour bloodydeeds with furiousrage.2916:39I will giveyou into their handsand they will destroyyour chambersand tear downyour pavilions. They will stripyou of your clothingand takeyour beautifuljewelryand leaveyou nakedand bare.16:40They will summon a mobwho will stoneyou and hackyou in pieces withtheir swords.16:41They will burn downyour housesand executejudgmentson you in front of manywomen. Thus I will puta stopto your prostitution, and you will nolongergivegiftsto your clients.3016:42I will exhaustmy rageon you, and then my furywill turnfromyou. I will calmdown and nolongerbe angry.

16:43 “‘Becauseyou did notrememberthedaysof your youthand have enragedme with allthesedeeds, Iherebyrepayyou for what you have done,31declaresthe sovereignLord. Have you notengagedin prostitutionon topof allyour other abominable practices?

16:44 “‘Observe – everyone who quotes proverbs will quote this proverb about you: “Like mother, like daughter.”16:45You arethe daughterof your mother, who detestedher husbandand her sons, and you arethe sisterof your sisterswhodetestedtheir husbandsand their sons. Your motherwas a Hittiteand your fatheran Amorite.16:46Your oldersisterwas Samaria, who livednorth32of you with her daughters, and your youngersister, who livedsouth33of you, was Sodom34with her daughters.16:47Have you notcopiedtheir behavior35and practicedtheir abominable deeds? In a shorttime36 you became even moredepravedin allyour conductthan theywere!16:48As surelyas Ilive, declaresthe sovereignLord, your sisterSodomand her daughtersnever behavedaswickedly as youand your daughtershavebehaved.

16:49 “‘See here – this was the iniquity37 of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters had majesty, abundance of food, and enjoyed carefree ease, but they did not help38 the poor and needy.16:50They were haughtyand practicedabominable deedsbeforeme. Therefore when I sawit I removedthem.16:51Samariahas notcommittedhalfthe sinsyou have; you have done moreabominable deedsthan they did.39 You have made your sistersappear righteouswith allthe abominable thingsyou havedone.16:52So now, bearyour disgrace, because youhavegiven your sistersreasonto justifytheir behavior.40 Becausethe sinsyou have committed were more abominable thanthose of your sisters; they have become morerighteous thanyou. Sonow, be ashamedand bearthe disgraceof making your sistersappear righteous.

16:53 “‘I will restoretheir fortunes, the fortunesof Sodomand her daughters, and the fortunesof Samariaand her daughters(along with your fortunesamongthem),16:54so that you maybearyour disgraceand be ashamedof allyou havedonein consolingthem.16:55As for your sisters, Sodomand her daughterswill be restoredto their former status, Samariaand her daughterswill be restoredto their former status, and youand your daughterswill be restoredto your former status.16:56In your daysof majesty,41was notSodomyour sistera bywordin your mouth,16:57beforeyour evilwas exposed? Nowyou have become an objectof scornto the daughtersof Aram42and allthose aroundher and to the daughtersof thePhilistines– those all aroundyou who despiseyou.16:58Youmust bearyour punishment for your obsceneconduct and your abominable practices, declaresthe Lord.

16:59 “‘Forthis is whatthe sovereignLordsays: I will dealwithyou according to whatyou have donewhenyou despisedyour oathby breakingyour covenant.